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<div><strong>Join the Champ Watch: Help Bring the Lake Champlain Trilogy to Life...Lucy and the Lake Monster is a Trilogy...</strong>
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<div><strong>not a one-off, but a planned story world.</strong>
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<div><strong>As seen recently on The Daily Mail, The New York Post, William Shatner's UnXplained, NBC, CBS, The Sun, FOX, and National Report on Newsmax! We have captured history on film, and now we need your help to finish the story.</strong>
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<div>On June 7, 2026, the Daily Mail and New York Post broke the global story of our shocking, unedited drone footage capturing a mysterious 30-foot creature moving through the waters of Lake Champlain.
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<div>We are on an urgent mission to channel this global spotlight into finishing our dramatic feature film: The Secrets of Lake Champlain (the highly anticipated sequel to Lucy and the Lake Monster).
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<div>Independent filmmaking is a massive financial challenge. To sustain ourselves on location, keep our crew paid, protect our exclusive footage, and complete post-production, we need our global community to rally behind us today.
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<div>Help us turn this viral moment into an unforgettable cinematic reality.
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<div>Click Donate Now, and join us on this historic journey!
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<div>Disclaimer: No raffles, sweepstakes, giveaways, or returns on investment are offered in exchange for any donations made to this GoFundMe.
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<div><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong> "<em>Lucy &amp; the Lake Monster,</em>" is based on the novel I co-wrote with Kelly Tabor, my lifelong friend. Our book won "Best Children's Author" at the Red Letter Awards in Nashville, over 30 film festival awards, and has been a <strong>hit with kids </strong>who have lined up at our book signings at Barnes &amp; Noble and elsewhere.
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<div><strong><em>Lucy and the Lake Monster</em></strong> tells the tale of a nine-year-old orphan and her grandfather as they search for a sea serpent in Lake Champlain – one of the largest national lakes in the country and located in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains in New York and Vermont. They battle bullies, naysayers, and mercenary forces seeking to exploit them. <strong>Their journey is an allegory for humanity’s search for spirituality and carries a strong anti-bullying message. Here's a trailer for the first film: </strong>
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<div>Here's a link to watch the ENTIRE MOVIE <strong><em>"Lucy and the Lake Monster</em></strong>" FREE:
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<div>The first book was published in 2022, and is the first in our proposed trilogy series. You can buy our book “<em>Lucy &amp; the Lake Monster</em>” online at Amazon, Walmart, or Barnes &amp; Noble. The first film was recently released, and you can watch it on Amazon, YouTube, Tubi, Plex, or FreeVee.
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<div>I’m a filmmaker whose works include the award-winning "<em>Canaan Land",</em> "<em>Sister Aimee: The Aimee Semple McPherson Story,</em>" and "<em>Baseball’s Last Hero: 21 Clemente Stories"</em> that starred Olympian Jamie Nieto and Project Runway winner Marilinda Rivera. You can watch these three films FREE on Tubi.
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<div>The project came together in the past few years. I was playing the role of Rev. Charles Dodgson aka Lewis Carroll in a stage musical in Los Angeles about Alice in Wonderland. I got the inspiration to write a classic children’s story of my own since I’d just become a grandfather.
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<div>After a series of surgeries where I almost died, I moved the children’s book from the inspiration list to the bucket list. That is when I remembered Kelly’s true stories of Champ, the legendary creature that lived in the murky waters of Lake Champlain near where Kelly grew up and whose sightings were recorded by the Iroquois hundreds of years ago. Her stories about her childhood searches for the famed creature <strong>inspired hundreds of students over the decades.</strong>
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<div>“I looked for Champ when I was a child, I heard stories about it, I have had family who have seen it before,” Kelly Tabor said. “Telling these stories and sharing them with my students was always a wonderful experience.”
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<div>We wrote the book together over the course of a year often using Zoom to communicate since I live in California and Kelly lives on the East Coast. During this time, we started working on a film version as well because it was such an<strong> inspirational story.</strong>
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<div>The main character, Lucy, is an orphan girl who’s nine years old and she’s mocked by people for her belief in Champ. I see it as similar to Alice in Wonderland, or something that could be an allegory for other things.
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<div><strong>Pictured Below: Filming Lucy 1:</strong>
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<div><strong>Pictured Below: Filming Lucy 2:</strong>
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<div>"Papa," is played by me, and his granddaughter, Lucy Lago, is played by actress Emma Pearson in Lucy 1 (<em>Lucy and the Lake Monster</em>), and by actress Anastasia Liodori in Lucy 2 (<em>The Secrets of Lake Champlain</em>). Kelly plays Lucy's teacher. Lucy and Papa go on a search for Champ, America's Loch Ness.<strong> </strong>
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<div><strong>SAVE CHILDREN FROM BULLYING &amp; ANXIETY</strong>
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<div>The story has a beautiful spiritual message and it helps children overcome issues of bullying, worry, anxiety, and low self-esteem, because <strong>children need you and I to encourage them like never before. </strong>
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<div>Bullies taunt Lucy in a scene from the first film. "Your mother died, because you're junk and she didn't want to stick around you," Butch the Bully said.
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<div>Lucy rose to her feet. "The only junk around here is the junk that comes out of your mouth," Lucy said.
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<div><strong>TAKE A STAND TO PREVENT BULLYING</strong>
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<div><em>"The story of Lucy helped me stand up to the mean kids, and stop bullying and talk to my teacher and Papa, the way Lucy did," </em>(Lauren V., age 9, Orlando)
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<div><strong>Your donations enable us to make the second book and film in the series. Your contributions today are 100% tax-deductible </strong>through our film ministry of Eternal Grace, (our tax-exempt non-profit since 1988). Thank you for your consideration. Every donation, even a small donation, is a huge help to us!
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<div><strong> A SOCIAL MEDIA SHARE, SHOWS THAT YOU CARE </strong>
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<div>Please share this today with your friends, co-workers, relatives, &amp; neighbors through text, email, social media, &amp; word-of-mouth.
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<div><strong> </strong>Co-authors Kelly Tabor &amp; Richard Rossi pictured below at Barnes &amp; Noble book signing:
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<div><strong>PEOPLE ARE TALKING: EDITORIAL REVIEWS</strong>
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<div>"An <strong>Instant Classic</strong>! Perhaps once per decade a story comes along like "<em>Lucy and the Lake Monster</em>" to <strong>inspire, empower, and equip children with the tools they need to walk this journey of life with faith, confidence, and wisdom</strong>." (TV-6 NEWS)
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<div>"<strong><em>Champ, our favorite Lake Monster, is the star in this book and film series</em></strong>. Tabor, a teacher in South Carolina, and Rossi, a filmmaker in Los Angeles, have put their creative minds together to form "<em>Lucy and the Lake Monster</em>." (CBS, Kelly O'Brien)
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<div>"<strong>A gift to bring joy and smiles to the children of the world</strong>..." (Religion News Service)
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<div>"The unique story and plot twist have made this novel one of the <strong>most beloved children's books in the UK.</strong>" (UK Wire)
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<div>***** "Five Stars Out Of Five! "<em>Lucy and the Lake Monster" </em>by Richard Rossi and Kelly Tabor is a <strong><em>deeply thoughtful, heart-warming, inspirational, and timeless children's novel. </em></strong>I loved the sweet and caring relationship between Papa Jerry and Lucy. Their dialogue is reminiscent of the precious and unique love between grandparents and grandchildren. Despite the negativity that infuses their world, including bullying and ridicule, Rossi and Tabor managed to keep the story light-hearted. They maintained a perfect balance throughout the plot between the innocence and simplicity of Lucy and Jerry's world and the evil threatening to enter and destroy their faith. I think "<em>Lucy and the Lake Monster"</em> is an excellent book,<strong> beautifully written and filled with many pearls of wisdom that will inspire children</strong> never to lose their <strong>childlike wonder</strong>." (Readers' Favorite, Jennie More)
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<div><strong>IMPACT CHILDREN TODAY: LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION!</strong>
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<div>Would you like to bring a children's classic to the silver screen and impact the lives of children worldwide, for generations to come?
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<div>Join our cast and crew in bringing the story to life and to the world. Click the donate button below now. Complete your donation today. <strong>Every penny will help.</strong> We'll be very good stewards of every dollar coming in. Your gift will be put to work immediately.
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<div>We're bringing this wonderful adventure to life and we need your help. Your generous donation becomes a stepping stone to a world of enchantment. Be a part of this extraordinary journey! Support the "<em>Lucy &amp; the Lake Monster</em>" sequel, "<em>The Secrets of Lake Champlain</em>" today.
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<div><strong>Every little contribution helps so please dig deep. </strong>See you on the red carpet! THANK YOU VERY MUCH for joining us on this journey! Have a Champtastic Day!
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<div>Donate Today: Every dollar counts! Contributions above our goal will directly fund the purchase and distribution of "Lucy &amp; the Lake Monster" books and film to children, schools, foster homes, child advocacy centers, churches, shelters, libraries, and underserved communities, and help us make the sequel book and film come to life.
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<div>Your generosity has the power to transform lives, one story at a time. Join us in spreading the joy of reading and fostering a brighter future for children everywhere.
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<div>Thank you for being a champion of literacy and compassion. Together, we can make a meaningful difference in the lives of young readers across the globe.
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<div>Disclaimer: No raffles, sweepstakes, giveaways, or returns on investment are offered in exchange for any donations made to this GoFundMe.
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